A Wary Irish Channel

If you live anywhere in or near this “up-and-coming” neighborhood, consider yourself warned of the latest crime spree: At least seven homes were forcibly broken into and burglarized last weekend.

One of the victims, my across-the-street neighbor, had his door kicked down just after dinner. When the perpetrator noticed he wasn’t alone in the house, he grabbed and brandished a knife from the kitchen and chased (yes, CHASED) the resident around the house and down the street. He made off with tons of stuff, including a cable box and $3000 worth of jewelry. After the cops showed up, the scum had the gall to return and seize a pair of toy handcuffs, which he used to restrain a young woman at his next crime scene!

Crack related? Maybe. Or perhaps our new neighbor Wal-Mart has spawned a tidal wave of irreversible urban resentment and a new breed of criminal, more rancorous and merciless.

The bottom line is that our beloved Channel is not “there” yet. To some, “there” might mean blocks upon blocks of white affluent families in charming country cottages. To me it means simply being able to smoke on my front porch swing without fear of losing my life. Where is the gentified Irish Channel our parents promised us…?

Wal-Mart alone accounts for 8% of U.S. retail sales, exclusive of automobile sales. They must have some powerful efficiencies at work for them if they’ve been able to take that much market share by keeping prices low, while still making enough profit to continue attracting investment.

Here are some more speculative benefits: By keeping their own prices low and forcing competitors to do the same, they’ve benefited consumers directly and benefited the economy indirectly. The indirect benefit has come in the form of canceling inflationary pressures and thereby allowing the Federal Reserve Board to cut interest rates more than they would otherwise have been able to. We’re probably paying less interest on mortgages and credit cards partly because of Wal-Mart’s limiting effect on inflation.

At the level of political sloganeering, I’ve heard it said of Wal-Mart and New Orleans, “Is the worst of the suburbs the best we can do?” But considering how much better the nearby commercial district on Magazine has done since the demise of the old housing project (about which you can ask Trent at Stardust Salon), it seems that “the worst of the suburbs” or even nothing at all is better than what was there for decades beforehand.

I don’t mind saying, either, that I’m looking forward to savoring all the price reductions the next time I go to Winn-Dixie. Competition is tough for businessmen and great for consumers. Whose side should we take?

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